1922] Conoaxima 157 



Type from Quirigua, Guatemala, January 14, 1912. (W. 

 M. Wheeler). This species undoubtedly attacks Azteca also, 

 as Professor Wheeler took the specimen from the hollow thorn 

 of an Acacia when collecting nests of Azteca at a place where 

 these ants were abundant. 



The anatomical similarities between Conoaxima and Axima 

 are interesting on account of the habits of the two genera. The 

 first account of the habits of Axima was given by Howardi who 

 cites a number of instances in which Axinio. zabriskei Howard 

 has been reared from small bees under conditions that allow of 

 little doubt that the Axima is a primary' parasite. On three 

 occasions the Rev. J. L. Zabriskie bred examples from nests of 

 Ceralina dupla in stems of sumac at different localities in New 

 York State. Howard found also in the Museum of Comparative 

 Zoology at Cambridge specimens presumably bred bj' ]\Ir. H. G. 

 Hubbard from larvae found in burrows of a small blue bee at 

 Fresh Pond in Cambridge, and further specimens in the Cornell 

 University collection bred from a bee supposed to be Ceralina 

 dupla. There can be no doubt therefore, that A. zabriskei 

 attacks Ceratina and it is very probable that the other members 

 of the genus parasitize small bees of some kind. 



Professor Bailey obtained also a single larva and pupa of 

 Conoaxima. The larva probably full-grown is of quite unique 

 form, due to the presence of a dorsal series of large, unpaired 

 tubercles. The first of these is on the metathorax and each of 

 the four following segments bears another one; those of the 

 abdomen are larger than the metathoracic one and of about 

 equal size. From the wrinkled appearance of the thin integument 

 that covers the tubercles, it seems evident they are capable of 

 considerable distension during life. After preservation in 

 alcohol, the larger tubercles project for a distance of about one 

 fourth the dorso-ventral thickness of the body and are more 

 than half the width of the body segments to which they are 

 attached. Following these there is a much smaller projection 

 at the tip of the sixth segment and a minute one at the tip of 

 the seventh. From the position of the head and the curvature 



'^Insect Life, vol. 2, pp. 365-367, 3 figs. "A North American Axima and its Habits" 

 (1800) 



